The Arizona state legislature could have voters decide on a measure to eliminate legislative immunity for state legislators who receive traffic violations.
The push to undo the provision came from Republican Rep. Quang Nguyen, the chairman of the state House Judiciary Committee, after three of his fellow Republicans in the legislature recently used legislative immunity in an attempt to get out of a traffic violation. If the measure appears on the ballot and is approved by voters, it would make it so lawmakers are subject to the same traffic laws as ordinary citizens.
“Elected officials should not have special privileges that allow them to break the law without accountability,” Nguyen said. “The people we serve are expected to follow traffic laws, and legislators should be no different. If a lawmaker is caught speeding, running a red light, or committing any other traffic violation, they should face the same consequences as everyone else.”
The measure passed the Arizona House in a bipartisan manner but faces an uncertain future in the Arizona Senate.
There is a provision in the state constitution that prevents lawmakers from facing certain penalties while the legislature is in session, including speeding tickets and other traffic violations.
In January, Republican state Sen. Mark Finchman was pulled over for driving 48 mph in a 30-mph zone in Prescott, Arizona. If Finchem had reached 50 mph, he could have been facing a higher, criminal speeding charge over the low-level misdemeanor.
Prescott Police Chief Amy Bonney later received a letter from Finchman on official state senate letterhead, in which Finchman asked for the violation to be removed.
“Perhaps the officer is unaware of the law in this regard,” Finchman wrote at the time. “For my part, I was unaware that the stretch of the road I was driving on was 30 MPH … Regardless, under Article 4, Part 2, Section 6 of the Arizona Constitution, I ask that the citation be voided and stricken from the record.”
The Prescott Police Department filed a motion to dismiss Finchem’s case “without prejudice.”
“The Arizona Legislature is in session, and if the court finds that legislative immunity extends to civil traffic citations, then the state would ask for the matter to be dismissed,” the police department wrote.
The provision allows state legislators to be free from arrest and questioning in all cases except for treason, felony, and breach of the peace, beginning 15 days before the legislature convenes and remaining through the session.
Other Arizona lawmakers in recent years have used this provision to get out of tickets, with three Republican lawmakers using the provision to delay or entirely get out of traffic tickets last year.
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Last year, Republican state Sen. Justine Wadsack received a speeding ticket for going 71 mph in a 35-mph zone. Her response to the ordeal caused her to lose her endorsement from one of the largest law enforcement bodies in the state.
In 2018, former Republican Rep. Paul Mosley was pulled over for driving 97 mph in a 55-mph area. Video footage obtained by the news blog ParkerLive showed Mosley bragging about being a fast driver, which he says earned him the nickname “lead-foot lawmaker.”